Fontana Nissan 5th Annual Meet Update

Posted on September 13, 2013 by Omar A.

As detailed in a previous blog post, this year we attended Fontana Nissan’s 5th annual meet. I must say, it was hot like a ___ out there.

As expected there were tuned Nissans left and right. 350Z, 370Z, S13, S14, g35, g37 and so on and so fourth. None of these cars are even near as good as my Altima coupe (just kidding!!!), but there were some pretty spiffy rides out there. Take a look at the photos we took below.

Shouts out to Joe and his 300zx . He has been a loyal Tein customer for years.

Dampachi sure knows how to make friends.!!

Geoff Stoneback Takes Home the 2013 US Drift Championship!

Posted on September 11, 2013 by Paul P.

Geoff had a pretty busy August, to say the least. He had to prepare for two events this month, both on one weekend, giving him very little room for any error. Fortunately, Geoff was prepared.

On the 15th, Geoff and his crew loaded up their S14 at their tuner, R/T Tuning in Lansdale, PA, which they had recently installed a new G-Force GSR 4-speed transmission to replace their T56 gearbox which had been experiencing a few issues in past events.

Leaving later than expected, they stopped over in Columbus, OH to the Kenda Tire warehouse to get stocked up for the events, then made their way to Detroit, MI for Midwest Drift Union on the streets of Detroit.

Upon their arrival, Geoff’s good friend, and fellow drift competitor, Mike Skudlarek, offered his house as accommodation for the crew, taking the team around the greater Detroit area along many of the scenic routes of the Motor City, giving Geoff and the team time to relax before a hectic race weekend.

With Geoff’s recently repainted S14, they had no vinyl for this event. So at midnight, at a parking lot of a grocery store (which provided them with enough lighting), they went right to work putting their sponsor decals on. Afterwards, it was a short night’s rest before the event.

As mentioned earlier, the event took place on public roads around Detroit, and some portions were recently repaved and transitioned into older surfaces, giving the drivers a mix of grip and slip to deal with. The next morning, Geoff took the car out and gave it a 50% run around the course. After getting a feel for the layout during practice, Geoff was informed that his driving line would make it difficult for slower cars to follow him. So Geoff had to discuss and redo his driving line.

During qualifying, Geoff had a spin on the older section of pavement, where there wasn’t much available grip. After another qualifying run, Geoff was placed at a disappointing 15th grid spot. So it was on to battle.

The first run was against the LS2 powered Pontiac GTO Shane Whalley. During Shane’s lead run, the judges deducted points for braking through the sweeper, giving Geoff the win.

Through the Top 8, Geoff faced Dan Summers, which eventually went into OMT (One More Time), but on Dan’s lead run he crashed, destroying a wheel and some suspension components. Repairs were made in the allotted time for Dan to make another run with Geoff. However, Geoff was quick to strike, making a deep, smooth line giving him the nod once again.

Top 4 was about to get a bit tougher. Geoff faced the lighter, more powerful S13 of Andrew Lewis. Not deterred from the this fact, Geoff kept right up to Andrew’s door. Fortunately for Geoff, Andrew’s car suffered from a broken axle. Unable to repair the car in time, Geoff once again got the win.

For the final battle, Geoff was up against Mike Skudlarek. Both runs weren’t exactly working in either driver’s favor. However, a few mistakes by Mike ( hard braking in the sweeper; not initiating drift on the follow run) went unnoticed by the judges, giving Mike the win.

So, a tough and somewhat disappointing 2nd place finish for Geoff.

Next was a trip to West Virginia for the US Drift Rd. 4 event.

Already late in the day in Detroit, Geoff and crew hit the road just after 11pm, making as few stops as possible to make it to the driver’s meeting at 8:30am the next day.

Knowing that their 2nd place standing in the US Drift championship was a really close one (14 points behind James Evans), Geoff had to really step it up for this event. Making it to the drivers meeting with just a few minutes to spare, Geoff soon made his way out to practice.

The course was super fast, with entry speeds anywhere between 75-90 mph. Also, it was raining. To make practice difficult, Geoff had to bring the car in, make some suspension setup and tire pressure changes, giving him little time during practice to get a feel for the revised setup.

Qualifying went relatively smooth for Geoff, and he placed a 3rd grid spot for himself. US Drift points leader James Evans qualified 7th, so Geoff’s earned points in qualifying were starting to get him towards the top.

With only 12 qualified drivers for this event, things were starting to look up towards Geoff’s championship. The first battle against the 2jz powered S14 of Charlie Tyson was actually easy enough for Geoff to get the nod, even with Charlie running extremely consistent and fast the whole day.

Good news came Geoff’s way when James Evan was knocked out during Top 16, while 3rd place points holder Troy Manners, was put away in the Top 8. This mean an automatic 2013 US Drift championship for Geoff!

Not one to call it a day, Geoff went into the Top 4 against Dave Bellemo in his 1JZ powered S14. Slightly preoccupied with the thought of the US Drift championship on his mind, Geoff had a a somewhat difficult time getting focused. Fortunately the run went into OMT, and Geoff was able to get the nod once again.

For the final run, Geoff faced ex-teammate Dan Savage. Dan, a good friend of Geoff, taught him tandem drifting, so Geoff knew that this run would be good fun. On the first run, with Geoff in tow, Dan spun on the last inner clip, just inches away from Geoff potentially crashing. On the second run with Geoff leading, Dan kept it close up until the second inner clip where Geoff put out a lot of angle, losing Dan who eventually spun off! Geoff took home first place for the event!

So there you have it, a second place finish in Detroit, a first place finish in West Virginia and a 2013 US Drift championship all in one weekend!

We’re certainly proud of Geoff and team and their accomplishment for this season. But it is far from over- the final round of Midwest Drift Union, Clubloose Freedom Moves, Holley LS Fest in KY, and Formula D Pro-Am in TX are a few of the upcoming events that Geoff has lined up for him. We look forward to his updates!

Congratulations, Geoff, on your 2013 US Drift championship!

https://www.facebook.com/GeoffStoneback484drift

http://www.usdrift.com/

http://mdudrift.com/

2014 IS350 Testing

Posted on September 4, 2013 by Sergio M.

We are happy to inform everyone that we are currently in the works of testing both TEIN coilovers and lowering springs. Along with the restyled body the new IS350’s suspension has also taken on a different design making the previous model IS suspension not interchangeable. With these changes, most of the kits used are currently prototypes, which are matched to what has the best ride quality. Once confirmed, the best overall component and spring coiling design the kits are then placed under mass production.

Products expected to be release for this application are the the S.Tech and High Tech lowering springs, Street Advance and Street Flex coilovers. Product release date has been scheduled for early to mid-November for both the S.Tech and High Tech lowering springs, early to mid-November for the Street Advance, and early to mid-January for the Street Flex. For release updates please check on our website as info regarding new product releases or product information is updated every month.

Fontana Nissan 5th Annual Meet

Posted on August 29, 2013 by Omar A.

What’s up guys?!! Next month will be attending Fontana Nissan’s annual meet on Sunday, September 8th, at Auto Club Speedway. This will be their 5th year hosting this NISMO meet. Of course, TEIN will be attending this event. I myself drive an Altima Coupe (dropped on TEIN Basic coilovers), so I’m excited to see what people have done to their coupes. I also look forward to seeing Infiniti’s and other Nissans present. I’m sure there will be slammed 350z, 370z, g35, g37, 240sx, 200sx, 300zx, GT-R, etc. The list can go on.

Make sure to stop by our booth and pick up some shirts and TEIN goods that we’ll have for sale. Also, feel free to ask any technical questions or product inquiries you may have. On display, we will have our EDFC Active control units for customers to play with and see how it works.

Make sure to check back with us next month to get an update on this event. Please visit the links provided below to get more information on this event.

https://www.facebook.com/FontanaNissan

http://www.nissanraceshop.com/page/69-69/meet-info

[vsw id=”lAV7A6JchLw” source=”youtube” width=”425″ height=”344″ autoplay=”yes”]

Geoff Stoneback at the U.S. Drift Round 3 Event

Posted on August 26, 2013 by Paul P.

Our friend Geoff Stoneback and his team took off to New Jersey Motorsports Park at the end of July and gave us a full report. Here’s what he had to say:

” On Friday July 26th we loaded up the Kenda tire / TEIN s14 and headed to Clubloose’s friday night drift party to hang out with all of our buddies and see some awesome local drifting. We wanted to drive really bad but didn’t want to put any damage to the car, so we borrowed a couple of our friends missile cars. After doing a couple runs and changing some tires we parted ways and headed to New jersey motor sports park for US Drift round 3.

I have never drifted this course and we heard that it is a fun, fast track. We were lucky enough to get a suite on track so we could be up early for practice.

On Friday at 7am we headed to the pit area and went to the drivers meeting. There were 16 solid drivers ready to tear the track up. After our meeting, we headed out on course. We got used to the track instantly and had fun laying down some solid lines. With the course set up, our gearing was a little weird. 3rd gear was too short and 4th gear was a bit long. We made some changes to tire pressures and sway bar settings to try and compensate for the gearing issue.

We were sharing the course with ARCA, which is a road race series so we had a huge time gap in between practice and qualifying. On our first qualifying run we headed down the track, with a hard flick and clutch kick we entered into 3rd and up shifted into fourth. We laid down a decent run and put points on the board. On our second qualifying run, we pushed it even harder and entered in 4th gear. We flicked really hard and had an aggressive entry and we were really tight on all of the clips. With that run it secured us into qualifying 2nd.

On Sunday we geared up and had an hour practice session and track went cold for us until a couple hours later. Around 3:30 we headed into competition. Our first battle was against Ben Sarli in his BMW 540. We put down a solid lead run which gave us the advantage. In our follow run we kept it conservative and at the last clipping point, Ben spun. We got the win!

In our top 8 battle we went up against a very good friend, Reese Marin. Reese and I have been friends for years and go back to the street drifting days in Philadelphia. Our battles are always neck-and-neck and very intense. On our lead run we laid down a good fast line with Reese not far behind. On our follow run we left the line hard, but missed second gear and Reese took off and we had to play catch up. We closed the gap a bit, but during that period we dropped one tire into the dirt and he got the win.

We were bummed that we didn’t make it to the podium, however we finished the day in 6th place and are still second in the series trailing James Evans by 18 points.

So after Round 3, we brought the car to a buddy’s shop to get a little restoration, looks-wise. After the paint booth, we took the car to R/T tuning going over some alignment specs and doing some upgrades so we no longer will have any shifting or gearing issues.

Our next rounds are a double header and a tough weekend! We have a 10 hour drive to Midwest Drift Union Round 3 in the streets of Detroit! We are really excited and eager to get back on the podium. Right after Midwest drift union round 3 is over, we immediately have to pack up and drive another 10 hours to round 4 of US drift, the final round in the 2013 series. Thank you to TEIN suspension for helping getting the car dialed in as amazing as it is and their outstanding support this season! Thank you to all my other sponsors, as well! “

We’re always glad to hear of Geoff’s enthusiasm as he heads off against some stiff competition at each event. With the few hiccups he’s had along the way, he has seemed to take them in stride, and we know that he’ll do a great job for the remainder of the season! Thanks, Geoff!

Enjoy this video while you’re at it.

http://vimeo.com/71604405

Chris Jeanneret and CNC Autosport Take on Formula Drift

Posted on August 22, 2013 by Paul P.

We’ve been quite fortunate being able to sponsor some of the most talented drivers looking to get their way into the drifting world. This year, we also sponsored Chris Jeanneret of CNC Autosports who is campaigning in his STR Racing S14, using our Flex dampers.

As it is, the Formula Drift series is quite a challenge. Many of the newer competitors face some seasoned drift veterans. Many of which are heavily funded to keep them at the upper tier of competitors.

Chris, although not new to drifting, is fairly new to the Formula Drift series. We were glad to support him on his voyage into the big leagues.

Here’s what Chris has to say about his experience so far:

“Formula drift round 5 (Monroe, WA) was a victory for us in many ways. Although we didn’t finish where we wanted, we made it farther than we thought with how many odds that were against us. The Sunday before FD was the first time to drive the car and we only got 3 solid runs in the car, since we were spending so much time just checking it over after every run and making huge changes right out of the hole to get the car competitive. Those 3 runs put a huge smile on my face, but at the same time concerned me- it was the first time I have driven in 2 years and now I have to get me and the car ready to qualify in 4 days.

Thursday practice at FD was not looking good for us. We broke 4 left side axles on initiation in a row. We spent the rest of the day trying to figure out what is going on and why. We only managed another 2 runs for practice that day.

Friday was the day my team and I had to get things together and start working on our qualifying line. We went out for practice after the drivers meeting and had a great game plan and thought we had everything on the car figured out, but as luck would have it we broke another axle. This time, however, it was the opposite side! We scrambled to get another one in the car and back out to practice. As we got back to grid to do our burn out, I tried to do a rolling burn out, and as soon as I lifted the same axle broke again! Ok, so now we are on our last axle and we have to go out for qualifying and it’s all or nothing. So I did the lightest burn out and aired up the tires more than I wanted to be as easy on the car as possible and hoped for the best. As I left the line the car felt really loose, so I initiated as light as possible and set the car into drift and after that I said to myself “well let’s hope she holds together!”, and it did. I pushed the car as hard as I could out to the wall clip and the touch and go area then into power alley. I never lifted from 4th gear leaving a whole set of Falken 615k tires up in smoke in one run. After I cleared the middle of the track I came through the final hairpin feeling the tires were done and tried my hardest not to hit the wall with my foot flat on the gas pedal and finished my run. As I got back to the pits my spotter messaged me we got a 75 on our first run and I was smiling ear to ear and was hoping that would secure us as spot in the top 32, which it was. We were 29th, and now is the time to get the car ready for tandem.

Saturday morning the fans were pouring in, and all I can say was the pressure was on. Our first battle of the day was with, none other than Vaughn Gittin Jr., who is a driver I have always loved watching from the side lines and know is a straight up and aggressive driver that would be hard to keep up with. On our first run, we followed and I tried my hardest in the STR Racing S14 to just keep up with his crazy fast mustang, but once he initiated his car, he instantly put 4 car lengths on me and I just tried my best to stay on line and close the gap in the infield with running a shallower line. Next we would follow and all I could think is that Jr. is going to be right on me so I need not to lift at all. This time I tried a different approach to my initiation and it backfired- the transmission popped out of 4th gear and I went straight. At that moment, I knew my day was done and pulled to the inside lane and let Jr. go around me.

Although we didn’t make it passed top 32 we qualified with very little practice and learned a lot about the car and we were the only Northwest team to qualify. I think that says something about our program. We certainly look forward to improvements for the next round, and bridging the gap closer to the podium!”

We wish Chris and the team great success this year. It’s great to know that he will keep on fighting to prove his mettle out on the track, and we know that he do well. Keep up with Chris and please be sure to give him your support.

https://www.facebook.com/chrisjeanneret

Mazda RX-8 and Miata MX-5 Lowering Spring Installation Precautions

Posted on August 15, 2013 by Sergio M.

Hey everyone. This had been brought to our attention a few months back from two consumers having ride height issues with the S.Tech lowering springs on their 2004 Mazda RX-8 (SE3P chassis) 2006 Mazda Miata MX-5 (NCEC chassis). This ride height claim had become puzzling to us as we had encountered this type of issue which was a quick an easy fix by preloading the suspension but for some reason this did not seem to work.

Baffled, we requested the customer send the lowering springs to us for further inspection to determine if the springs had any manufacturing defects and to our surprise they were within spec. Looking to further find a solution to this issue we decided to bring a car in for testing to determine the cause. This is where it became a little more interesting, as we were able to physically do the installation rather than reference the consumers photos and measurements. We proceeded with the spring install following the bump rubber cut and all to find that we too were having the same issue even when preloading the suspension.

Concerned, we had to confirm all of the suspension bushings and components conditions which all were found in excellent condition. At that moment a light bulb lit up and someone had an idea. The bushings on the control arms. (when the control arm is pivoted) had an extremely short amount of give/ movement. With this in mind we tried preloading those bushings, as well as those which the dampers bolt on during the second install. Once the vehicle had been placed back on the ground the ride height corrects were immediate. The vehicle ride height was within the kits values without any further complications with ride height and with excellent ride quality feel.

Both images shown above and below would illustrate a Red circle drawn on the bushings detailed in the post.

Now this was an issue found on these two particular models but has not occurred with any other manufacturer. Please keep in mind that these vehicles did use the OEM shock absorbers. The use of any aftermarket type shock absorbers may also effect the ride height values as we had only done testing on the stock shocks absorbers. Please be cautious with the selection should the new dampers be required.

I do hope this post helps any consumers out their who may have encountered this situation with the aforementioned vehicles. Always remember that should you have any further concerns with these applications utilizing our lowering springs or any of our other product lines, please don’t hesitate to drop us a line. Also for further details on the process of suspension preloading, please revisit the TEIN Blog post “Applying Suspension Preload” for a breakdown of how to do.
http://teinusa-blog.com/applying-suspension-preload/

Insight – EDFC Active

Posted on August 15, 2013 by Sergio M.

With introduction of our new EDFC Active, a system which automatically changes dampening according to speed and G-forces is a leap in technical innovation in which we are known for. It’s in our name, TEIN (short for TEchnical INnovation). However I always get asked numerous questions on the track and at car gatherings about what “advantages the new system provides?” and “is it worth it?” Well having the system installed in my Miata for the past 2 months has allowed me to fully and completely understand the system and help shed a little bit of light on the matter.

Continue reading →

CARBING OIL CATCH TANK VEHICLE SPECIFIC APPLICATIONS

Posted on August 13, 2013 by Sergio M.

A few weeks back, another TEIN USA employee had done a Blog Post about the Carbing Oil Catch Tanks that we distribute for Okuyama Co., I would like to let you know that they now have Oil Catch Tanks for vehicle-specific applications. This will guarantee a easy set up for the product to be bolted into your vehicle.

Below are just a few of the vehicle application that they have out now, but it is always best to keep a look out on their website for any new products or vehicle-specific products.

http://carbing.co.jp/international/index.shtml

They have different products for all types of vehicles. Most of these items are a Special Order only but it is a product that we can get into the States. Please verify that the item will work properly for your vehicle as they test and manufacture some of the items for Japanese domestic vehicles.

Mitsubishi Evolution (CT9A)

Mitsubishi Evolution (CZ4A)

Subaru Impreza (GVB/GRB)

Toyota (86/FR-S)
Subaru (BRZ)

Geoff Stoneback Updates from Midwest Drift Union Rd. 2

Posted on August 8, 2013 by Paul P.

Always staying busy, Geoff Stoneback and team set route for the Midwest Drift Union Round 2 at Gateway Motorsports Park in St. Louis, MO.

Prior to this, Geoff picked up his S14 drift machine from R/T Tuning after they completed a new wheel alignment and check-up on the car, taking a midnight drive into Missouri. Knowing what to expect as the course layout, Geoff was already mentally prepared. He knew this would be a good event.

A full 25 hours later, he and the team unloaded car and equipment at the track, then back out for a short sleep stint before going through tech inspection and driver’s meeting the same morning. Happy with the S14’s settings, Geoff went out for practice.

With 3 sets of tires already spent getting comfortable with the course, Geoff knew he had to conserve tires. At least he was able to dial in his settings for the best angle and tire smoke. Judging by the other drivers out on track (with crazy entry speeds and tons of smoke), he knew it wouldn’t be an easy set of battles to come.

On his qualifying run, Geoff went in really hot, getting the car into a backwards entry and scrubbing off way too much speed. Eventually, the front tire would knock the clipping point. Disappointed with that run, Geoff was glad to get points for it, which was most important to him.

For his second run, Geoff went in with even more speed and a backwards entry, netting him a 5th place qualifier. Qualifying was tight, with the top 6 drivers being within 1/2 points of each other sequentially.

Knocking out an LS3 powered Nissan 350z in his first round, Geoff advanced to the top 8.

The next heat would be tough- His friend, Andrew Lewis, with an LS powered S13 making 450whp makes more power than Geoff’s S14. So Geoff had to step it up if he wanted a tight tandem run. Nevertheless, Geoff’s consistency got him the nod, advancing him to the Top 4.

As you can guess, it was about to get even tougher for the team. Up next was a battle with another close friend, Mike Skudlarek in his 500whp s13. The first run with Geoff in chase kept him up to the door of Skudlarek, and a quick adjustment with a tug on the e-brake sacrificed a little of his angle. This gave Skudlarek the nod.

Second run with Geoff up front, he was able to gain some distance as Skudlarek had a slight bobble. It looked like it was going into “One More Time.” However, judges ruled Skudlarek the victor.

Disappointed, but not deflated, Geoff had a chance to claim a 3rd place finish, but his competitor wasn’t able to complete repairs in time, giving Geoff a bye-run. Even with 3rd place secured, Geoff decided to give the crowd a smokey run.

Although this event ended on a strange judging call, Geoff holds second in the points standing, leaving him a lot of time to rebuild and get focused. We’re still glad to see Geoff on the podium! Great job!

*BONUS*

Here’s a video link recap of the Midwest Drift Union Rd. 2 on Vimeo

http://vimeo.com/70345359

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